The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for processing flat printed products, such as newspapers, magazines and parts thereof. The invention includes the method for processing flat printed products, such as newspapers, magazines and parts thereof, in which the printed products are held in the region of a side edge by controllable grippers, which are moved along a conveying path. The printed products are conveyed by these grippers in a product stream. The invention also includes an apparatus for processing flat printed products, such as newspapers, magazines and parts thereof, having a conveying device for conveying the printed products in a product stream along a conveying path. The conveying device has controllable grippers, arranged one behind another at intervals along the conveying direction, that function to grip the printed products in the region of a first side edge.
Conveying devices for conveying printed products, which devices have grippers arranged one behind another at intervals, are known for example in European Applications EP-A-0 557 680 and EP-A-0 600 183 and the corresponding U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,388,820 and 5,395,151 respectfully. The grippers of these known conveying devices grip the printed products in the region of one of their side edges and hold the printed products firmly at this side edge during the entire conveying travel, that is to say until the printed products are delivered.
In Swiss Patent Application, CH-A-546 197 and the corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 3,809,214, various embodiments of turning conveyors with drivers are described, which take over the printed products, conveyed by a belt conveyor in a horizontal imbricated formation, from this belt conveyor. The drivers of the turning conveyors act on the printed products and rotate the latter during their further conveyance through 90.degree. about a vertical axis of rotation running at right angles to the main surface of the printed products. In this way, for example, the folded edge of the printed products that leads in the imbricated formation becomes the side edge in the following imbricated formation. After the printed products have been rotated, they are once more conveyed further in a horizontal imbricated formation by a further belt conveyor.